Lancaster and Palmdale also have below-average rates of fully vaccinated residents, with Lancaster at 58% and Palmdale at 66%, compared to the countywide vaccination rate of 73%.
“If you’re not vaccinated, you’ve got a much higher risk of ending up infected, ending up in the hospital and tragically passing away. That’s crystal clear and it hasn’t really changed for months now,” Ferrer said.
However, seven of the communities on the top 10 list of highest new-case rates have vaccination rates that exceed the countywide rate, according to the numbers presented by the Department of Public Health. Studio City, with the third- highest new case rate, has a 79% vaccination rate, and Santa Clarita, placing fourth on the list, has a 75% vaccine rate. Ferrer said officials are studying the data to determine what is driving higher case rates in those communities, but she insisted the numbers don’t mean vaccines aren’t effective.
She said current figures show unvaccinated people are nine times more likely than vaccinated people to get infected, and 67 times more likely to be hospitalized.
Ferrer also noted that the median age of people becoming infected ranges from 26 to 36, meaning young people are driving the numbers.
“I will say the one thing that does jump out — the average ages were very low in all these communities,” Ferrer said. “This is, essentially, in the communities with the highest rates, this is a pandemic that is in fact fueled by younger people.”
Given the young median age of infected people, “we know that intermingling both socially and at work sites is contributing,” Ferrer said.
“Whoever you are and wherever you live, whether you live in a community with a high vaccination rate or with not-so-high vaccination rates, the most important thing you as a person are going to need to do is get yourself vaccinated, the people you love vaccinated, and then be sensible about precautions around intermingling while transmission rates remain relatively high across the county,” Ferrer said.
The county reported another 26 COVID-19 deaths on Thursday, raising the overall virus-related death toll to 26,949. Another 1,088 cases were reported, giving the county a cumulative pandemic total of 1,515,324. The rolling average daily rate of people testing positive for the virus in the county was 1.1% as of Thursday.
According to state figures, there were 611 COVID-positive patients being treated in county hospitals as of Thursday, down from 616 on Wednesday. Of those hospitalized, 148 were in intensive care, down from 155. Ferrer said 82% of county residents aged 12 and over have received at least one dose of COVID vaccine, and 73% are fully vaccinated. Of the county’s overall population of 10.3 million people, 71% have received at least one dose, and 63% are fully vaccinated.
Ferrer said the number of people who received a first dose of vaccine in the past week jumped up sharply, due primarily to the expansion of vaccine availability to include children aged 5-11. Black residents continue to have the lowest vaccination rates, at 54%, followed by Latina/o residents at 59%, whites at 72% and Asians at 80%. Of the roughly 5.99 million residents who were fully vaccinated as of Nov. 16, 75,249 have subsequently tested positive for the virus, for a rate of 1.26%, Ferrer said. Of the vaccinated population, 2,528 have been hospitalized, for a rate of 0.042%, and 422 have died, a rate of 0.007%.
Ferrer noted that the county has not seen a spike in COVID infections following Halloween, unlike the situation last year when cases began rising sharply. She said she is hopeful that residents will continue to exercise caution over the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.
“We will need to take a cautionary note from what we’re currently seeing in other parts of the United States and in other parts of the world right now,” Ferrer said. “In the Mountain West and throughout Europe, cases are rising and hospitals are once more flooded with COVID cases, almost all of them among unvaccinated people. These trends remind us that the virus is much more easily transmitted when people are indoors and intermingling without protection from vaccines and other mitigation measures.”
Yours truely says
At last…
Lancaster, CA is #1 at something.
I thought I was not going to see it. I’m in tears.
Thanks to everyone vaxed and antivaxed.
We're #1 says
Lancaster is #1 in crime in the AV, too. Don’t forget that. Also #1 is moronic statements from its mayor.
William says
Lancaster voters” LEAPS dollars at work.
LEAPSUX says
The most productive thing LEAPS has ever done was to provide flight hours for the son of Wrecks’ former sheriff captain. We the tax payer paid $10 million dollars for flight time. LEAPS has done nothing to lower crime or keep us safe. It has made money for one of Wrecks’ long time political donors and pals.
Stephanie Speaksouttoday says
Where is the mentioning of the booster shot in this article? Due to waning protection from the Vaccine, people are getting breakthrough infections because they were vaccinated six months ago or more. Where in this article is is mentioned that “du! Maybe the reason cases have risen in the AV is because people aren’t getting booster shots. ” Now, in selective states and in New York City, any0one of all ages can get the booster shot. Prior to this recent turn of events anyone over 65 and or with any kind of health condition or works in an public environment are also eligible. This includes grocery store workers, school teachers, even people who smoke. They ask you these questions with a yes and that qualifies you for the vaccine booster shot. It’s available all over pharmacies, and you can mix an match. This article didn’t mention that either. They must really think or want the good people of SoCal to stay ill-informed, dumbed down and getting sick. The good people of SoCal I know you have it in you to be better informed and do what’s right, you’re just not getting the right information and people are continuing to get sick.
Tim Scott says
Now that kids can get vaccinated I am really over it. We don’t need to stop the spread to protect people who can’t be vaccinated (apologies to the small segment that have allergies or whatever, but I digress). For the vastly most part people who die from covid at this point have chosen to do so, and I just flatly do not care about them any more. We as a society should stop all efforts at containing this thing and just let it kill as many of the people who are refusing modern medicine as it can get.
Sally Saayso says
Why aren’t y’all angry about this! You seem so “oh well, say la ve such is life”. NO! This is a pandemic by choice and so many of you are obviously just kicking back and tossing causation in to the wind instead of going down to your pharmacy, Walmart, Albertson’s or a dozen other places around the AV and getting yourselves vaccinated! How hard is it1 It’s free! It’s Safe! It’s easy! But cases are still on the rise here.. in one of the most progressive liberal states in this country! And people are getting sick and continue to die because you’re being too stubborn? Unbelievable. Get vaccinated and stop the spread or else we will be living with this travesty forever. This is just plane dismal and inexcusable. This is California, one of the most densely populated states and yet I see the way some of you walk around like we’re in Bomount Montanna!
Sally really says says
This is a pandemic by choice! You are spot on! You choose to get vaccinated and your good. Don’t worry about anyone else. I don’t need to spray myself with sunscreen to protect you from a sunburn booboo. This is NOT how vaccines work. Wake up to common sense, smell the next wave of “small pox” and the grid going down just the the G-7 summit predicted is going to happen. Did you realize they also predicted in 2019 there was going to be a pandemic? Planned is the key word here booboo. Do a little research from other countries so you can open your CNN crusted over eyes a bit.
Fourth wave incoming says
The low vaccination rates are not because the state or the CDC or any other number of people arent educating the public. The low vaccination rates are because all of the future Herman Cain Award winners who reside here believe they know better than the medical community and virologists and immunologists etc. They are choosing to be willfully ignorant, whining about “the protocols” and stuffing livestock medicine (yet call the vaccinated mask wearers the sheep) and zinc down their throats and foregoing masks because they believe that really clever meme they saw on FB makes them smarter than actual experts. The truth is, they are terrified and feel like they have no control over the situation so by overcompensating with their FB meme knowledge they get to feel like They are in control, like they are the only ones truly in the know. But in doing so, they are being selfish, putting others in danger, and putting a huge strain on our hospitals and hospital staff. These very people are the ones who then beg the doctors to save their lives when they start suffocating, then their spouses and children get to watch as they suffer for months as they feel like they are drowning in open air, having strokes and heart attacks, losing limbs, get kidney failure and eventually getting put on the vent until they finally get the sweet release of death, and they leave their spouses and children behind to fend for themselves. I cant think of a more selfish demographic. Anybody eligible for the vaccine who chooses not to get it deserves everything that is coming for them. And COVID will come for them eventually. I hope they at least have good life insurance. But they never think that far ahead. Instead, they will rely on GoFundMe to make up for their decision to leave their family in financial ruin, which is ironic since these same antivaxxers tend to scream about the evils of SoCiAlIsM. Or, you could avoid all of the pain and suffering and just get the jab. But this all comes back around to their fear. I’m willing to bet a part of the bravado is that they are actually scared of a little needle poke. It all comes back around to them being scared.
No Remdesivir says
Willfull ignorance is exactly what your words are. All of the health problems you listed are the exact side effects of the shot. People are not suddenly anti vaxxers because of 1 single shot, that absolutely no doctor can give informed consent on because there is no long term data. The fact that the cdc does not want their research to be released for another 55 years is reminiscent of Fauchi’s HIV and AIDS experiments on gay men in the 80’s. How fast you are to beg for a magic elixir when fear is involved.
Vaxxed Nurse says
You need to log off social media and rid your brain of the propaganda. Visit reddit.com/hermancainawards for a peak into your future. I would love to read a peer reviewed article about the vaccine causing these issues. I’m a nurse, all of the patients in ICU and on vents are unvaccinated. I have not had one single patient during this entire pandemic hospitalized from the vaccine. Ask any funeral home director which demographic is causing them to cremate twice the amount of bodies than usual. You guessed it, the unvaccinated. Your “Fauci AIDS bad man!” Rhetoric is the exact same thing every single Herman Cain award winner spouts. All unvaccinated people share the same memes, recite the same propaganda, and repeat the same ridiculous misinformation and talking points. You’re being brainwashed by YouTube, Facebook, and Fox News. Here’s a hint: doing your own research means reading peer reviewed studies, not repeating the same tired phrases as every other antivaxxers. Seriously, unplug from social media and the 24 hour news cycle for a month or two, talk to your family about sports and hobbies and tell jokes. Step outside of your bubble. The vaccine is extremely safe, and it saves lives. It saves you from being crippled from long COVID. It saves your family from having to put you in the ground. Do you not have the ability to think about what happens to you if it turns out youre completely wrong about the “dangers” of the vaccine? You’re really willing to gamble with your life and risk an excruciating prolonged death full of suffering because you don’t believe any of the data that’s available to you through your city, county, state, and country? The vaccine is extremely safe. COVID is extremely risky. Why gamble with the only life you get?
America's Most Agreeable says
Well said. Thanks.
No Remdesivir says says
Doctors have had their peer reviewed articles pulled due to pressure from Pfizer. Pfizer is “sponsoring news outlets, social media, and has made 36 billion off of these shots. If they were safe, Pfizer would have no problem removing the liability. What if it turns out you are “wrong about the vaccine”, right back at you. Other countries are reporting trends of high hospitalizations and deaths of fully vaccinated patients. Doctors that speak out against the dangers of these shots , risk their reputations. Doctors are willing to have their licenses reviewed or pulled just for not supporting the narrative. My gosh people , It was the democrats that said they would never take a shot that operation warp speed was producing due to insufficient research and health concerns. They said it could have serious health implications, I agreed then and I agree now.Donald Trump initiated the rushed mass production of these shots. There are always consequences to pay for no long term research.
Stinger says
As an aid to facilitate VN’s good advice, I suggest you do your searching on Google Scholar, instead of Fakebook, etc.
Fair warning: If you are not up on your understanding of scientific terms and words, you might want to keep a dictionary handy. As these are, indeed, professional articles, reports, etc., they do tend to get a bit heavy on the terminologies, some of which may seem obscure for many people not in their profession. But, hey, learning new words is good for a person to help keep the mind sharp.
Vaxxed Nurse says
No Remdesivir: right now there are 23 patients hospitalized at AVH with COVID. Only 3 of those patients are breakthrough infections of vaccinated patients. 20 are unvaccinated. There are 5 people in the ICU, all unvaccinated. There are 3 people who are intubated, they are all unvaccinated. You say these vaccines are hurting people, but the reality is the vaccines are keeping people out of the hospitals. It is overwhelmingly the unvaccinated who are dying. Do with that info what you will. I don’t get any joy out of proving you and people like you right, because most of the time that means you die. It is incredibly sad that so many unvaccinated people are dying a very preventable death, just because they have fallen for the propaganda that is being fed to them through the FB algorithms. Every time an unvaxxed person starts to realize that they are going to die, they do one of two things: say their goodbyes and express regret that they didn’t get vaccinated, or dig their heels in further up until their last painful breath. I want you, and others like you, to realize how precious life is and get vaccinated. I don’t want to see you all die anymore. As it is, I’ll be in therapy the rest of my life from what I’ve witnessed. Your life is precious, you have people who love you and maybe even people who rely on you. Do the right thing, for them if not for yourself.
ICUP says
I’d like to know the age group and underlying conditions of these five folks in the ICU.
Ferrer the Ferret says
“If you’re not vaccinated, you’ve got a much higher risk of ending up infected, ending up in the hospital and tragically passing away. That’s crystal clear and it hasn’t really changed for months now,”
Sure if we are all 80 yrs old or have massive underlying conditions.
Other then that, Ferrer is a fool.
Paranoid Android says
Yeah, a high ranking county health officer who has a career studying and communicating about disease clearly knows nothing compared to an internet troll who resists advice that would protect themselves and all around them.
Who is the fool? Hmmmmm…… must be dem edumumcated libtards!
P.S. Trump lost. Get over it.
Stinger says
Thank you, PA. That was a most satisfying response. Dittos.
PS: Trumpism is curable.
Uhh says
“who has a career studying and communicating about disease”
She has a BA in community studies from UC, a masters in Arts education, and PHD in Social Welfare from BU.
Ferrer the Ferret says
Wrooooong,
And the Libs are praising your comment as if it were true.
That’s like saying Pete B majored in and has vast experience in transportation.
Paranoid retracts says
Alls I know is he must have major rhoids
Paranoid Android says
There isn’t a way to convince someone who isn’t open to a dialogue, but saying Barbara is a fool because only elderly or chronically ill people need to concerned as the original poster “Ferrer the Ferret” claims is simply untrue.
Deciding to not vaccinate as an individual choice would all be fine and good if the only people who remain vulnerable are those who choose to not vaccinate with whatever ‘credible’ information they use to make that decision. However, that decision has an impact on everyone else. It would be like saying I don’t believe in brakes so when I drive, I won’t use them. That is a risk to everyone, not just the driver who doesn’t believe in brakes.
Peace. Please consider being considerate to others. We all know someone who has fell seriously ill or died of Covid at this point. We have high transmission rates in the AV. We can be more protected if we find a way to care about others. Sadly, that doesn’t mean we will.
Paranoid retracts says
Kamala Harris is high ranking, yet still a complete moron, so what does high ranking prove? You know you can pass with C’s in school right?
Paranoid Android says
I think that Kamala earned much better grades than the cheating, whiny, little b**** 45 who was clearly high ranking and at minimum, the most destructive human being of this century. He even thought he was above the Constitution, dismissing the other two branches as insignificant. A division of power with checks and balances is what saved our democracy, temporarily anyway, as the judicial branch held firm . The legislative branch sure came close to breaking, it bent a whole lot and is still busting at the seems.
Ferrer isn’t a fool. 30 years of experience in communicating on health issues and she oversees a billion dollar budget. She is trying to communicate the need to vaccinate and take precautions as cases are again on the upswing. We have now lost more lives to Covid in 2021 than in 2020 despite vaccines being available in 2021. Clearly trying to convince people with their own alternative facts’ isn’t doing much regardless of who is trying to communicate health issues. Thanks again to 45, we are further divided and people are proud to not give a poop about promoting the general welfare of the nation. (hint: see the preamble, it a stated goal of the Constitution)
America's Most Loveable says
LMAO. Where does Trump come into this other than he ramrodded the vaccine development (thanks Pres. Trump). You have terminal Trump Derangement Syndrome. Or as our courageous Beecee says: “brain worms” (lol, good one). In other terms, you have serious mental pathologies.
Is Trump behind every door? Around every corner? Help, help the The Trumpers are after me, lol. Run! Run!
He’s gone. 45 is no longer POTUS. Don’t you have anything else? This is your mess. Have some credibility and own it. You just spout Trump crap to deflect and obscure people’s eyes from the political debacle taking place in the “progressive” (read socialist) Democratic Party.
Boom!
Sonya says
OuR DeMoCrACy!!!
Tim Scott says
I was going to say something about your post being nonsense, but the smash down from PA seems to have covered it completely.
Mmmkay says
You’re part of the problem. All these dumba$$ people up here swear their so smart. 9x out 10x they haven’t even made it out the trailer park in life..
America's Most Inquisitive says
Are you related to “Todumb”?